Mobile Services that Empower Vulnerable Communities
ICT4D and Cash Transfers to IDPs
in Bamako
CRS Mali
Cash, Cell Phones, iPads, & Debit Cards
Ousmane MAIGA
Head of Program
March 20, 2013
ICT4D Conference
Accra, Ghana
Emergency Cash Transfers to IDPs
Bamako (Communes 3, 4, 6)
Goal: 4,000 displaced persons (599 households) in Bamako
can respond to their top 2 priority needs without resorting
to negative coping strategies.
Partners: Office of Civil Protection, National Agriculture
Development Bank (BNDA), IOM
Budget : $ 501,811 USD
Length of project: 6 months (July-December 2012)
Why ICT4D? Facilitates communication, beneficiary
registration, payment verification, M&E, beneficiary dignity
ICT4D Solution: iPads for Beneficiary
Registration
1. Verification Table
2. iPad Registration Table
3. Accountant Table
4. Payment in secure location
Software/Vendor: iPad & license for cloud-based
iFormbuilder (iformbuilder.com)
Tech Support Required: None
Staff Support: Train staff to use iPads & iFormbuilder; Followup during implementation to problem-solve & brainstorm
Pros & Cons: iPads
PROs
•
•
•
Information saved on iPads can be uploaded
rapidly to the online database, eliminating data
entry errors.
Thanks to iPads, the payment/distribution list can
be verified the same day with M&E.
The ability to take beneficiary photos with iPads
serves as a deterrant for non-beneficiaries to
cheat the system.
CONs
•
Capturing open-ended responses inpostdistribution surveys can be challenging if the
surveyor is not very accustomed to typing on a
touch-screen tool.
ICT4D Solution: Debit Cards
1. Sign contract with bank (BNDA)
2. Bank supplies debit cards &
secret PINs
3. Distribute debit cards & PINs to
beneficiaries
•
•
Confirm identity, distribute card & PIN
Hostesses assist beneficiaries to use ATMs
Software/Vendor: Bank
Tech Support: None
Staff Support: None
Djélika Haidara, IDP from Timbuktu, holds
her debit card
PROs: Cash vs. Debit Cards
CASH
•
•
•
•
Establishes a face-to-face connection between
beneficiaries, authorities, and CRS.
On-site resolution of problems or questions.
Beneficiaries gather in 1 place, making it easier to
conduct post-distribution and satisfaction surveys.
Same-day verification of the number of beneficiaries
that registered and the number that received cash.
DEBIT CARD
•
•
•
•
•
Withdrawals can be made when & where
beneficiaries choose, at their convenience.
35 ATM locations across Mali (15 in Bamako).
The bank provides all necessary personnel.
Eliminates the risk of insecurity or fraud associated
with direct cash distributions.
Engages beneficiaries with formal banking systems.
Training at ATMs
CONs: Cash vs. Debit Cards
CASH
•
•
CRS provided all personnel and organized all
distributions, including calls to beneficiaries to
assign days/times and staff for verification.
Potential chaos on distribution days, i.e.
beneficiaries may show up on days or times that
were not assigned to them, resulting in long wait
times.
DEBIT CARD
•
A BNDA hostess demonstrates how to use
the ATM.
•
•
•
•
Illiteracy makes remembering PINs and using
ATMs more challenging.
ATMs lacked small bills.
ATMs go down when the internet does.
Establishing bank contracts can be timeconsuming.
Beneficiary liberty makes M&E collection more
difficult.
Lessons Learned using ICT4D
CELL PHONES
1. Designate a phone line for feedback, FAQs, advice,
etc.
2. Plan for the staff (and staff time) to call beneficiaries
to give them distribution times/dates.
iPADs
1. GPS on iPads can make it easier to locate beneficiary
lodgings in order to conduct M&E.
2. Camara on the iPads makes it easy to identify
beneficiaries and resolve any confusion between 2
IDPs.
DEBIT CARDS
1. Debit cards uphold beneficiary dignity—after the
initial distribution, debit cards can be used at the
beneficiary’s discretion.
NEXT TIME…
1. Add bar codes to beneficiary participation cards to
further accelerate registration and verification.
This 3-year old, who fled Gao with
her mother and 6 siblings, holds her
family’s participant card, Nov. 2012
(Helen Blakesley/CRS)
ICT4D Costs
Unit
BNDA
Prepaid debit card
Cost to charge/recharge
Card
Recharge
Orange Money
Web SMS service access fee
Monthly SMS fees (600 SMS)
fee
fee
Cash Distribution service fees
transaction
Staff presence at initial distribution
(5 locations*3 days)
person/day
Purchase of cell phones
cell phone
Purchase of SIM cards (donated by
Orange)
card
iPads
iPad + Griffin cover
iFormbuilder license
iPad
license
Unit
Cost
Quantity
Frequency
TOTAL
500
500
$12
$2
1
1
$6,000
$1,000
$7,000
1
1
$51
$71
1
1
$51
$71
500
$4
1
$2,000
15
500
$45
$22
1
1
$675
$11,000
500
$0
1
$0
$13,797
2
2
$549
$4
1
1
$1098
$8
$1106
*higher costs may be necessary in areas where bank networks/ATMs do not exist
Cash-Use
(September 2012)
Results Achieved
85% food
3,777 IDPs received cash distributions
(573 HH, of which 274 were female-headed HH)
43% health
28% lodgings
Total Amount Distributed (*Nov 2012)
$ 285,538.70 (cash)
$73,078.64 (debit card)
24% clothes
9% communication/transport
5% to other IDPs
Coping Strategies Before & After
Before Cash
After Cash
Change in Household as a
Result of CRS Intervention
(September 2012)
56.4
85% able to meet family
obligations
31% access to basic
health services
23% restored dignity
12% access to material goods
4% education
4% other
38.8
27.3
17.6
14.1
11.5
6.2
0.9
2.2 0
1.30.9
1.31.3
Key Messages
•There is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach in a dynamic, diverse
emergency context, even within the same country. Multiple
systems (direct cash, debit cards, mobile money) should be
considered at the same time in order to serve all those in
need.
•Cash transfers must combine speed, efficiency, and
innovation, and the approach must be flexible enough to adapt
to changing circumstances.
•You CAN teach an old dog new tricks. Have confidence that
people can learn to use new systems, like debit cards and
mobile money.
QUESTIONS?